I’ve been thinking about how I should review this album, there’s a lot to be said for a band like Amon Amarth and I decided a short rundown of their work was in order.

First, you have Sorrow throughout the nine worlds, This is a very solid mini CD that somehow changes from beginning to end (the last track Under the greyclouded winter sky) is just amazing, you really grow attached to the band by the time this EP is over. The problem with this band I thought was the fact that it suffers from the same problem as many good bands from the Gothenburg area: They get compared to everyone. The guy at the store told me that this was something like “an angry version of In Flames” whereas I find them much more like Dark Tranquillity (hold it! Don’t go put in the Gallery yet!) if we listen to the guitar work, but Amon amarth would prove themselves further on.

Once Sent from the Golden Hall Is the bands first full length CD and if you’ve heard it, you know it’s absolutely great. Everything is there, good drumming, excellent guitar work, great vocals, everything is good, and the best thing about this CD is the fact that Amon Amarth starts to define itself as their own band and run out of the shadow that bigger bands like At the Gates, Dark Tranquillity or In Flames.

Amon Amarth’s third release The Avenger had me somewhat frightened prior to its release, they had a new drummer. Don’t get me wrong, I never had anything against getting a new and talented skin beater, but Amon Amarth had (now Opeth’s) Martin Lopez behind the drum kit and this was a very important part of the music. Luckily my fears were dissipated when I finally heard the full album and I realized that while having a different style than Martin Lopez, Fredrik Andersson was more than perfect for this job. That’s 3 REALLY good albums!

This time around wasn’t worried, I was expecting any big changes, I wasn’t waiting to hear Amon Amarth experiment with anything, I wanted to hear my Viking lyrics, I wanted staccato riffs and a Gothenburg death growl… and here it is! The Crusher is a very good follow up to The Avenger, it features everything you love about Amon Amarth, fast paced songs, melodic passages, the death growl, top notch drumming and just that aggressive feel that many bands are lacking today. The only thing I might set against these Swedes is the redundancy in their lyrical content, with this one it’s 4 albums where you hear stories of brave Vikings battling the race of lying Christians with the God’s help. Now don’t get me wrong, I love this stuff, but they might be overdoing it, a little bit of diversification wouldn’t hurt at all.

All of this being said, my final view on this CD is that it’s really worth getting and you SHOULD get it if you liked the first 3 efforts by the Swedes! In my head, the one thing that sets these guys apart from a lot of bands is the fact that they weren’t afraid to keep going down the same lane (much like Bal-Sagoth) with 4 different CDs. Heed El Cid’s advice and follow Amon Amarth’s example, if it’s not broken, don’t fix it!!